Murder Drones: Three Days to Live

Episode 7.... Our Hailing Grace

For the next few weeks V and Gambit were up to their waists in studying dance while Uzi and I oversaw their progress, and let me tell you that I was MORE than amazed to see such! Everything V taught- from terms to steps, Gambit picked up just as quick, along with the execution and mannerisms of which each move was portrayed. Gambit had flow, feeling, and furthermore, the grace one needed to be a successful Ballerina. Today was finally the day Gammy was looking forward to, and the four of us were gathered in the Eastern wing of the colony for the tryouts. "Remember Gambit," I began, scooping her into my arms, "no matter what happens, you tried your best, and momma and papa are very proud of you." "Thank you papa." She giggled, giving me the biggest hug ever as a sort of tinkling filled the room. There were several parents there with their daughters or sons, which meant that there were several that may outperform Gambit- several different opportunities that may either boost Gambit, or knock her out completely. It was also a toxic game of favorites as well, and to be a ballerina you must have a tough exterior to handle the jabs thrown at you! "Attention please?" The instructor began, catching all of the children's attention as she continued, "Welcome, young dancers, to this year's Ballet Tryouts!" The room applauded for a bit, and she cleared her throat as she explained, "The rubric for this year will be based on your posture, personality, grace, and how well you execute the moves we assign with a music of our choice, ranging from Mozart, to Beethoven. The possibilities are endless, so just let loose and have fun my darlings! And hopefully, it'll be you we see on the stage floor." "YAAAAY!" The kids around us cheered- even Gambit bounced in my lap excitedly as the instructor left, and three others, the judges I assume, passed out the rubric papers to the parents to fill out. After they were filled out and collected, the children were escorted to a room separated from their parents to exercise and stretch, and we were corralled into an observation room to watch. "According to the sheet," V began, "There will be thirty kids chosen to be on the team, with the top ten being main dancers, and the top one chosen to be lead ballerina. I calculated, at most, sixty five children including Gambit. Her odds of getting on the team is quite high!" "Well I hope she makes it to top ten, with how hard she's been working." Uzi said, smiling happily. "Well, I hope she makes the lead ballerina!" I stated with a grin as Uzi flashed me a look that basically told me to "Get real". After an hour of silence, the tryouts finally began with the first being a girl named Styx. "They're going from eldest to youngest?! This is going to take AGES!" I thought to myself, and I decided it'd be best to make myself comfortable in the cushioned seat I was in as we watched each child perform- some being absolutely amazing, others being mediocre, and others just downright terrible. It was a long, grueling process- seeing kids who did badly get released with their parents, and the parents of those who did well and half well go to another room with their parents. The number of kids doing well bothered me as I pondered if Gambit would even GET to try out with how rapid the team spots were filling! As it stood, out of thirty spots to fill, there were only seven left. How much time flew by for there to be only SEVEN spots left to fill, and about ten kids left to go? Out of my peripheral I could see Uzi, sweating in anticipation as she most likely pondered the same thing I was, and I grabbed her hand to relax her as we kept our eyes glued to the competition. A girl named Shadia was one..... A boy named Gethro filled second..... I began internally praying to robo God that Gambit would at LEAST have a chance to show her newly honed skills.... finally it came down to the last spot, and two children remaining: Jahara, and Gambit, and Jahara begun her audition with a bang. She swayed, twirled, kicked, and jumped, and I felt sure Gambit would have her little heart broken when something totally unexpected happened. Jahara went to do one of her leaps, the LAST leap that would make or break her, and when she landed, the most horrific, painful, ear splitting screech I've ever heard began to wail through the room. Jahara had injured herself! Her parents, in a panic, leapt from their seats to race down to the audition room to check on her as the judges rushed over to examine the damage, and as it turned out, the unfortunate youth had not only sprained her leg, but also broke her foot. It pained me, seeing her hurt so much, but at the same time I wanted to thank her for allowing Gambit to try for the last spot as the instructor had no choice but to disqualify Jahara. Once her parents had carried her out, Gambit was called into the room, and the three of us sat alone as we watched her audition nervously. There she was, my beautiful diamond, dressed in a black, sparkly, practice leotard and skirt with white slippers, and leg warmers as she performed her resting position. She looked so small in front of the tiny group of judges; remaining silent- almost as if they were already judging her. "Ahem." The instructor coughed before saying, "And you are?" "I am Gambit Doorman, ma'am." She chirped, upbeat and smiling wide. One of the judges leaned over thinking they were being sly, and although I didn't hear them, i saw him mouth to the lady next to him, "Her voice is about as ugly as her paint job." Making the other judge hold back laughter as the woman asked, "And how old are you, sweetheart?" "I'm five." "What made you decide to be a ballerina?" The third judge asked, scratching down her answers on a piece of paper. "I saw your poster a few weeks back and thought it'd be mighty craic." "Pardon?" "Craic? Fun?" "Hmmm..." the judge jotted down her response again, then asked, "What is your experience when it comes to dance?" "Eh?! Oh.... I-I sorta JUST got into dancing. When I saw your poster was when I started to practice with my Aintín V in Mhamaí's and Papa's living room." Now, I'm one to admire honesty- don't get me wrong, I'm proud of her for telling the truth. Sometimes though there's such thing as being TOO honest, and in most cases need to switch up most of the story. HERE was one of those cases, as the three of us grew wide eyed, and the judge remained silent. "A-Are you serious?" He asked, sounding shocked. Gambit nodded her pretty little head at them innocently, and again, the sly judge leaned over to his cohort to mouth, "This'll be rich." Making her chuckle. At this point I wanted to go down there and tie his tongue in a knot so his yap could stay shut, and the judge interviewing her the most asked in an amused tone, "You're an ambitious one, aren't you? How well do you expect to do?" "Well, with my Aintín's time and my Mhamaí's and Papa's support, I guess you could say I'm aiming to do quite well. You're the judges, after all, so I expect to at LEAST make the cut." "And may I ask who your parents are?" "Why, they're up there in the observation seats- my Mhamaí Uzi, and Papa N." "UZI DOORMAN?!" They all screeched, whipping their heads around to face us as the three of us went completely stiff with nervousness. She was proud of us, I get that, but us three weren't the most popular bots in school.... Or rather at ALL as their widened eyes met ours. Now that I looked closer, the instructor and the judge talking to his cohort seemed familiar, and I waved at them with a strained smile to break the tension. Slowly turning back to face a very confused Gambit, they remained still.... Very abruptly, they all zoomed into a small squad, and I could hear a cacophony of whispers and murmurs as a feeling of dread washed over. Were they going to deny Gambit the right to perform because of US?! Finally they all came to a conclusion, not before flashing wicked smiles across their faces as the instructor announced, "Thank you, Gambit, for answering the questions truthfully. Today, you shall perform a dance that goes with a short trial of "Fur Elise" by Beethoven. Are you aware of what you are to be judged on?" "Yes ma'am." "Perfect! Then break a leg, and remember to simply have fun." The way the instructor spoke to her didn't sit well with me, and I caught a glimpse of V looking my way worriedly from my peripheral. What WERE they planning! Gambit looked down at the floor-starting position as the beautiful melody filled the room, and she began to flow gracefully to the music. She kept in mind everything V had taught her, from her spins to her leaps, and she looked absolutely stunning. "Maybe I'm just overreacting?" I asked myself, trying to settle back down in my seat as I pushed my feeling off as my nerves messing with me when the beautiful piano piece abruptly switched to a loud, hip hop kind of tune, catching us all, including Gambit off gaurd as she recovered from a spin to match the beat of the unexpected tune. Thinking it to be an audio glitch I looked down to see if the judges were hurrying to fix the issue.... They were NOT! The music kept switching, first to nightcore, then to rock, then to blues, and each time Gambit had to switch her moves to match the rhythm, risking injury from each position they stopped her in as she tried to keep up. Now I KNEW they were sabotaging her! I could feel my oil boiling inside me, and I felt the disassembly Drone inside try to claw itself to the surface as I gulped down the urge to devour, and slaughter the judges in the room in front of my beloved daughter. I covered my right eye, which turned into an X, and turned to see how the others were holding up just as V practically fled the scene, and Uzi covered her right eye to conceal the solver inside her. We grasped each other's hands tightly, frightened for both Gambit, and of ourselves should we let loose the animals within us in front of her as we watched transition after transition. Finally, the music came to an end with a slow cadence, and once she struck finishing position, Gambit did a bow, still visibly shaken by the turn of events as the radio cut to silence. I could tell what she was thinking as she stood back up, and returned to resting position in near tears as she struggled to maintain her wonderful smile- even Uzi and myself were wide eyed with shock at the disgusting attempt to make a mockery of our child when the female judge broke the silence. "That was..... Actually pretty amazing of you, Miss Gambit." She stated, causing Me, Uzi, the instructor, one of the male judges, and Gambit all gasp simultaneously in a flustered manner- even V peered around the corner to which she fled, brow raised in confusion as the lady judge explained, "We did everything in our power to stump you, but you somehow adapted to the feel of each song, and captured the right attitude for what was portrayed! I've NEVER seen such quick recovery- even from a beginner dancer like yourself!" "I agree," the male judge next to her began, "The way you executed recovery and feeling was expert for a mere novice. Well done!" Uzi and I breathed a sigh of relief here, and uncovered our eyes as we continued to watch the scene unfold. "I say we have MUCH to debate about with this one, Tina." The male judge said, looking at his female cohort as she nodded in agreement. "I agree with you there, Dom. What about you, Lynn?" She and Dom looked at the instructor, Lynn, who seemed shell shocked by their decision to praise Gambit. She shook her head, and replied snidely, "What's there to debate?! Her moves were about as dull as her metal, not to mention she looked nervous the whole time." "Only because YOU sabotaged her..." Uzi grumbled under her breath as she looked to the side in disapproval. "The only dull thing here is your attitude, Lynn. We did our part, and clearly, Gambit surpassed THAT! So obviously, she's going to be a fetching addition, no matter how dull her metal is, or how rugged her voice sounds." "Her voice isn't even rugged!" I muttered under my own breath, rolling my eyes to them. After the four argued, Gambit cleared her throat before squeaking in a tiny voice, "May I go, please?" "Yes, Gambit. Take the door at the far end of the room with your parents, and join the other children in the room, please." Dom replied, pointing to his left. As if it was our cue, the three of us raced from the viewing area to meet up with Gambit; not before thanking Tina and Dom for their change of heart before entering into the room with a clearly distressed little Drone. "That was awful. I failed you all!" She sobbed quietly, hiding her face in her hands out of embarrassment. "No, sweetie, you did good! Very good!" V consoled, taking the small child into her embrace as Uzi added, "Yeah. It was those rotten judges who failed, but you emerged the strongest! Top ten for sure!" After Uzi said that, Tina walked in with a tack and poster board, and tacked the board up for everyone to see as she announced, "The results for Lead and Top Ten ballerinas are here for anyone whose interested. "Boys and girls, review this chart, and remember what number your name is by because that is your place on the stage." "I can't look!" Gambit cried, hiding her face in V's chest in humiliation as she and Uzi comforted her. I, however, wanted to know.... I wanted to know just how badly the messed over Gambit, or if they even messed her out of a dream at all! Some of the kids voiced their opinion, chattering amongst themselves over their position as I weaved my way through, careful not to accidentally sting anyone with my tail as it nervously swished behind me; Looking at the poster board I skimmed from the bottom to the top, and my jaw hung agape as I widened my eyes. "WHOO-HOOO-HOOO!" I cheered, ripping the board from the wall to show the others, and I exclaimed as I pointed, "Look! Look!" "What on copper nine has gotten into you, N!?" Uzi asked in suprise as I held up the board in front of her face. Reading it herself, her confusion turned to shock before slowly melting into a proud grin, and she cheered "Aw, HECK yeah!" as V took the board herself. Smiling, she tapped Gambit lightly on the back, causing her to look at the results with a look of fear that melted into suprise the instant she saw whose name was at the top. Not ONLY had Gambit managed to touch the judges hearts, but she LANDED the top spot. She was THE number one Ballerina! I took my dear child from V, and spun with her happily as I squealed happily, "You did it, Gam! You got the lead!" "Yay!" Gambit laughed, now crying happily as I embraced her and her mother, with V joining in. I didn't care that the other parents were gawking and judging, the only thing that mattered was how happy my sweet girl was. That night at supper we made a toast to Gambit on her wondrous achievement today, and to V, our hailing grace, for making it all possible.